BEIJING - China's cement output increased by 19.6 percent year-on-year to 950 million tons in the first half of 2011, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) said Wednesday.

The growth rate was 2.1 percentage points higher over the same period last year.

June's cement output reached a historical monthly high of 198 million tons, 19.9 percent higher than the amount posted in June of last year, said MIIT on its website.

The price of cement kept growing as well. June's cement price averaged 325.43 yuan ($50.07) per ton, 1.07 yuan more than the previous month and 57.24 yuan more than June of 2010.

China's cement producers saw their profits soar by 170 percent to 35.2 billion yuan in the first five months, with sales revenue up 48 percent during the period.

But exports of cement and cement clinker were down by 35.5 percent to 5.6 million tons in the first half.

MIIT said the output surge was a result of the country's increasing investment in fixed assets, and the price rises were due to a variety of factors such as rising costs of labor and raw materials. The brisk domestic demand led to the drop in exports, according to the ministry.